Dominic Thiem- US Open’s Change Of Guard
Credit: Justin Lane/EPA
A final for the history books- Dominic Thiem prevails over Alexander Zverev to become the new US Open 2020 champion.
It was to be expected for this US Open final to be extraordinary. After a dramatic, grueling five-set match that lasted almost five hours, the tournament saw its champion. Dominic Thiem, after many years of ups and downs, finally lifted the US Open crown on Sunday night, with a beaming exhausted smile.
There was no doubt that this match would be a five-set duel. Both players have lethal weapons at hand- Zverev has his forehand and serve, and Thiem has his backhand. However, Thiem was the favorite for the title. He dropped only one set throughout the whole tournament against Marin Čilić in the third round.
However, the start of the match was far from ideal for Thiem. Zverev came out strong and powered through the first two sets. His serves were 130 miles per hour and forehands above a 100 miles per hour. He always spiced his game up with some short volleys, giving Thiem no chance of getting to them on time, due to him being deep behind the baseline.
Yet, the unravelling point for Zverev came in the third set when his double faults started to catch up to him. Thiem took advantage and his confidence level rose, as well as the boldness of his shots. He prompted Zverev to go the distance, to a five set thriller.
The sweet moment of victory. Credit: Chang W. Lee/ The New York Times
The fifth set was a rollercoaster.Both Zverev and Thiem broke each other’s serves in the beginning of the set and Zverev was within points of winning his first title at 5-3. Yet the pressure took its toll on him. Thiem made it 4-5 and narrowly escaped defeat when Zverev made it 15-30. Yet, through muscle cramps and nerves, Thiem finally prevailed in the tiebreak winning the last set 7-6 (6). This win made Thiem the first man, since 1949, to win a US Open final, trailing from two sets down, the second Austrian, after Thomas Muster to win a major title, and the first player born in the 1990’s to win a major title.
Does this truly mean a change of guard in professional mens’ tennis? Only time will tell, since the Big 3 are still causing problems for the next generation of champions. Yet, for now, let’s just be happy for the new US Open winner and for Grand Slam tennis finally being back.